While Chief Theresa Spence has received no permit for her temporary camp on Victoria Island, there is no plan to remove her.

The federally owned island, just south of Parliament Hill, is no stranger to aboriginal demonstrations.

“The aboriginal community uses that space often to express their interests, and they often have activities on that site as well,” says Kathryn Keyef, spokeswoman for the National Capital Commission, which oversees the island.

The Attawapiskat chief and a group of supporters have occupied the site since Dec. 11, when she began subsisting on a liquid-only diet and demanded to meet the prime minister.

Ms. Spence and her group did not go through any official channels before settling there, the spokeswoman said.